


i never really believed in once upon a times anyways

by JustAnotherWriterChica



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: AU, Beauty and the Beast, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-19
Updated: 2017-07-27
Packaged: 2018-11-16 03:28:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11245392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAnotherWriterChica/pseuds/JustAnotherWriterChica
Summary: once upon a time this would have been a tale as old as time, but with a twist of the enchantress' curse the past twenty eight years Regina has spent in her castle have been dark and harrowing, she's practically begging for the last petal to finally fall so it can all be over. then emma swan comes along and her entrance changes the entire story.





	1. aria

**Author's Note:**

> obviously this is a beauty and the beast au with my own little twists so i hope you guys enjoy it. the next chapter should be up soon, probably by the end of this week. hope you enjoy and please leave a comment so i know what you think!

i. aria

 

Every story starts down a similar path, _Once Upon a Time_ there was a beautiful princess, a damsel hidden away, a handsome prince, an orphan boy, and on and on the list goes. Except, my dear reader, never have I once heard the story of the innocent princess who longed for a life away from her mother's watchful eye, turned Evil Queen, locked away in her castle with nothing but a curse to save her from eternal damnation.

I realize that this sheds scant light on the whole story so allow me to enlighten you. Once upon a time...

  
Regina Mills, princess of the Southern Kingdom, was a beloved figure to her people from the moment she was born. The young girl knew no boundaries in her charity and kindheartedness, there was nothing she wouldn't do for her people should they ask and seeing as her father, the King, could never say no to his precious daughter where she went followed the royal treasury. Her father, King Henry, was much like his daughter in that aspect and while he was alive his kingdom was a happy land, crime was low, crops grew in abundance, and the other kingdoms gladly traded across their borders. The Southern Kingdom was thriving for the first time in quite a long time and with it, so did Regina.

Right up until the day King Henry died.

The royal doctor said that it was natural causes, heart attack due to poor lifestyle choices but Regina knew the truth and no one would tell her otherwise. Her father was as fit as a horse and seeing him so happy made Regina's mother, Queen Cora, absolutely miserable and for that very reason Cora had him poisoned. Regina had never particularly favored her mother and from that day on it only grew worse before blossoming into full on hatred. The day after the funeral was the first time Cora hit Regina, slapped the eleven year old for playing with a servant's daughter when "royalty should not dirty themselves amidst commoners". The first time Cora used magic on Regina, to her knowledge, was two weeks later when Regina had misspoken when sitting in on a council meeting. Cora hadn't done anything except stare coldly until the council members left and they were alone, then all bets were off and only her chambermaid dared to question the new scar on the young girl's upper lip. From there her life only continued on its downward spiral.

By the time Regina was eighteen she had been hardened by the life her mother had her living, her only solace and tether to the real world was a stable boy by the name of Daniel. That lasted three months until Cora had found them out somehow, Regina suspected the young servant who seemed to hang on Daniel whenever possible, and she killed Daniel in front of the princess' eyes. This had been the breaking point for Regina and that day the little girl who was born in a fair summer eighteen long years ago had died and welcomed the Queen, first as a means of survival but eventually as her entire being.

It didn't take Regina long after that to get rid of Cora, she had already mastered her magic through her mother's training so it wasn't hard to turn it against her. Once she had sent Cora to Wonderland, the Evil Queen took the throne and the Southern Kingdom's people continued to suffer as they had under Cora's rule although a few amidst the populous continued to hold out hope that one day their beloved princess would return to them and life would once again be wholesome within the kingdom. The whole kingdom had whispered rumors about the princess ever since their king had died, they had seen their princess clutch her ribs while riding through the streets as though she would come apart if not held up, limp as she did her best to keep up with her mother's stride, and flinch when the Queen would raise her hand in any way. No one knew exactly what happened but as angry as the public had been with the Queen, now they all pitied the Evil Queen and mourned the girl she had once been.

Then one day, out of the blue, the Queen decided to throw a ball for the nobles accompanied by a grand festival for the commoners. The kingdom was abuzz with news of the shocking turn around and the amazing plans they heard were being concocted. There were to be all sorts of festivities and for the first time in a long time the people enjoyed themselves again.

The day of the party came around and the whole kingdom was overjoyed, everyone having a good time except for the host herself who was suffering through a migraine in her west wing when there was a sudden shift in the mood. When Regina came to seek out the source of the disturbance she was met with an old crone, offering a rose in exchange for hospitality and money enough for a meal. Keeping with appearances, Regina laughed in the woman's face only to be stunned moments later by a transformation, the old crone was a beautiful woman who looked mildly pissed.

"Regina Mills, the _Evil_ Queen of the Southern Kingdom, your people loathe you and your party only serves as a minor distraction from their hatred. You treat them as though they are dogs below you, beasts who need to be disciplined and tamed, but you are no better than the standards you set. In retribution, for your people's sakes, that is exactly what you will become. A beast to be locked in her cage, no one will remember you, no one will save you, and no one will love you which, unfortunately for you, is the only way to break your curse. If you can get someone to fall in love with you and you them, truly and completely, by the time the last petal of this rose falls your curse is lifted. Should you fail to do so, everyone affected by the curse shall be permanently found in that state I am to be putting them in." And with that the enchantress was gone along with the nobles who had remained in her castle, the only people left were her staff but Regina didn't notice as the curse took hold of her immediately.

It took no physical effect at first but as soon as the enchantress left Regina's knees buckled and she fell to the floor, hands clutching her head and pulling at her hair as she was met with an onslaught of overwhelming urges. Urges to do unspeakably violent things to herself and the people around her, things that only a true beast would act upon. Brutal images ran through her mind, leveling her and leaving the once powerful queen to curl into herself on the ground. Seconds turned to minutes as Regina called out for somebody, anybody to help her, to make it stop, to do anything; just as she had when she was a small girl and learning exactly how cruel fate could be when her mother got her hands on her.

Except, as had been the case when she was little, nobody came, no one was able to help, and no one could save Regina from the new demons inside her head. She was left to writhe on the ground in her agony for hours, her staff all having been affected by the curse as well and unable to help even themselves, when she finally gained enough strength to teleport to her chambers, where she spent the next few days in much the same state, barely able contain the anger and destructiveness within herself.

Thus beginning the curse which would span the course of twenty eight years before any of our darling heroes and dastardly villains could enter their own story. Meanwhile, in those twenty eight years an orphan girl was learning to live the best she could, which meant playing by her own rules. She was a different story entirely, her own Once upon a time...

  
Emma Swan was born in the harshest of winters, the worst the Southern Kingdom has seen in almost seventy years and no one, not even her mother expected her to survive it. At least, that's what Emma told herself since her mother had dumped her at the nearest orphanage mere hours after giving birth to the child. Emma always assumed that was the reason anyways, she didn't ever want to believe that her parents just hadn't wanted anything to do with her, that was a colder reality than any winter.

So she grew up as a street rat, she toughened up early on and learned that the only way you were going to get anywhere in life was if you grabbed it by the balls and told life how things were going to go. She also learned a lot of her vocabulary and mottos from the bar she frequented as a young girl, her best friend Ruby's grandmother owned the establishment and eventually took Emma in herself. She was twelve by the time she happened upon the little pub and it was like a gift from the universe. Emma was probably three days away from starving and she was ready to give in until Ruby found her outside the pub, where Emma had collapsed from hunger and exhaustion, and stowed her away in the back room. Ruby took care of her until her granny found Emma and gave her an ultimatum; she could stay and live with them but help granny with work in the pub or she could take enough for three days of meals and leave.

She had taken the job without hesitation, what kind of orphan would have passed up that opportunity? Granny had been a bit distant towards Emma at first but Ruby immediately took to the girl and soon after the old woman followed step. This didn't mean in any way that she wasn't afraid to discipline either girl, Emma remembered many weekends spent cleaning out the stable's used by the patrons and hiking through the forest with Ruby to a small field almost six miles from the pub; Granny claimed it was the best spot to get some of her herbs but both girls knew it was just so they would be too exhausted to argue with her the next day.

For the next sixteen years Emma grew up in this little family that she came to call her own. Granny taught her girls everything she possibly could whenever she possibly could, Emma felt like the woman could turn practically anything into a life lesson and Ruby continued to ignore all of them. The girl was a troublemaker from the get-go and Emma was constantly sticking her neck out to get the girl out of trouble. Luckily Granny caught onto this charade pretty quick and Emma rarely took the blame anymore, even when she was the one who totally deserved it.

Life got easier for Emma and by the time she was twenty eight she thought she had it all. Well almost. Emma Swan took over as bar tender in Granny's Pub, locals loved her and she was quite the hit among both sexes, although she preferred the fairer. She was among the few literate people in town and spent most of her nights that she wasn't out with Ruby, reading about fabulous adventures and cliches that Emma joked about but secretly craved. Even with her harsh reality she's always been a bit of a romantic.

What Emma truly craved was a chance to see the world, to travel and play be ear, make decisions without facing consequences that could get her punched in the face. (Ruby was not above throwing the occasional punch)

This exact dream was what Emma was day dreaming about as she wiped down the bar, the last of the patrons were idling around and waiting for Emma to cut them off so they could just go drink at home when she heard the telltale scraping of metal against wood. When she looked up she had to force down a grimace, plastering a fake smile to her face when she was greeted by no one other than Killian Jones himself. He had been a swashbuckling captain in the royal navy, to hear the story told, but all Emma had seen since he came to town was the one hand wonder drink himself into a stupor every Friday night.

"Captain is there a reason you've decided to start carving out my bar?" Emma asked him evenly, even though she was inwardly gagging at the way the man reeked of rum and desperation.

"Sorry about that love, but you weren't exactly answering to any vocal means of communication. Lost in thought were we?"

_Ugh_ , Emma groaned in her mind, _why does he always feel the need to create a conversation. I hate small talk and I hate talking to him in general. If the man hadn't seen that by now he might need a new set of eyes in addition to that hand_.

"Perhaps." With that, Emma turned and began cleaning up her station in hopes of showing the man she had no desire to talk to him.

"Listen lass, I've been thinking -"

"A dangerous thing." Emma said with a smirk as she dried a mug, back still turned to the man.

"Uh, aye, but I've been thinking about settling down and starting a family. It's high time the world is graced with baby Jones' and I know just the perfect woman to fulfill that dream."

"My condolences to the poor girl." Emma muttered as she began to walk towards the opposite end of the counter when she felt a sweaty hand grab her arm. Not shocked at all, just irritated, her head shot up and she locked eyes with Killian menacingly before he took the hint and let go.

"I want you to be that girl, Swan."

Emma couldn't help it, as soon as the words left his mouth she burst out in laughter. He flinched at the boisterous sound while the blonde was practically doubled over as she struggled to catch her breath. "That's a good one Captain, but there's no way in hell i'd ever marry you. Not only are you inferior to me in almost every aspect of your being, except your ego which is quite inflated although i'm not quite sure why, and as I have told you every time you've made advances on me, I am not interested in you or your male member. And if you make some joke about me sleeping with anybody I swear to Gods I will punch you in the face right here, right now. Now leave my bar."

This seemed to throw Jones off as he took a step back, hand and hook raised in a gesture of surrender. "Alright love I can see that tonight isn't the night to be proposing such questions. Understandable. I'll come back again in a few days, when you've had time to think, don't you worry."

With that Jones stumbled out of the dinner and Emma watched him out the window until she was certain he wasn't just waiting outside for her. After that business was aside she quickly set about with closing up the pub and within fifteen minutes she was strolling down the path that led to her cottage. Emma used to live above the pub with Granny and Ruby, it made things easier on the family to have the business right below them but now that they were older and Emma actually understood what happened in pubs and especially what happened behind closed guest room doors she had no desire to lodge in that building.

  
She still lived with the other two women but she liked their new living space much better than the old rooms above the pub. This house actually felt like a home and as she pulled the door open she was met with the smell of Granny's cooking and the sound of Ruby's hard laughter, all the things that made the world feel right.

  
"Leaving me out of the fun?" Emma called as she walked into the small kitchen, leaning herself against the counter as she made a swipe for a piece of pie, only to have her hand swatted away. She flashed Granny her winning smile as she took a seat at the table next to Ruby and waited for the girl's laughter to die down before starting up her own conversation, just a light one about mundane things before Granny had served dinner. That's when the stories turned to Ruby as she told them all about the day she had had in town with Belle, the farm girl from the other side of town that she had been pining after since they were all seventeen.

"And that's how I ended up stuck in a barrel for almost half an hour." Ruby finished her story of the day's events with a laugh as Granny shook her head in bemusement.

"I wish that my day had been as exciting as yours Red, the longest interaction I had today was with a drunken Captain Hook. And he drunkenly asked to put his babies in me." Emma sighed and she saw the other two women cringe and cast a glance at each other.

Ruby leaned forward on her elbows, pushing herself conspiratorially towards the blonde sitting across from her before whispering, "You need to get out of here."

"I'm sorry, what?" Emma shook her head, not believing that she had heard those words come out right. _Get out of here? What was Ruby sick of her or something? Had she said something?_

Back tracking after seeing the panic flash through Emma's eyes, Ruby corrected herself. "What I mean is that small town life is doing you no good, you're not a "I know everybody and their mother" kind of person. You're way more of a free spirit Emma, a little place like this is no good for you, you're like a bird trapped in a cage."

Emma looked over to Granny who just nodded her agreement, the woman was being oddly quiet so the blonde stared until she received a verbal confirmation. "You haven't been yourself lately Emma, you're antsy. And when you're not antsy you're moping about or looking for some kind of fight. Jones is lucky you haven't put your hands on him yet quite frankly. I think you need a vacation."

"A vacation?" Emma wasn't the kind of person to look for breaks, she needed to be moving in some kind of capacity at all times. Ever since she was a little girl, moving meant surviving. She hadn't needed that skill as much since she moved in with Granny and Ruby, but there were a few times she thought Granny would kick her out so she had gone back into that survival mode.

"Yes. Even if it's just taking a ride into the countryside for a day or something to that effect, you need it." Granny added before standing up and telling the girls to clean up the table, her way of putting her foot down and putting an end to an argument.

Emma sat at the table still, slightly perplexed before she looked over to Ruby for some kind of answer. She got none as Ruby only pointed and supplied "vacation", before picking up the plates and clearing herself out of the room, leaving Emma alone in the quiet house.

"A vacation? Seriously?" _Who do they think they are? She didn't need a vacation and she wasn't moping, she was perfectly fine where she was in life. ... But maybe that's the problem. Maybe she shouldn't be content with being "fine" and instead she should be striving for something like "overjoyed" or some big happy word like that. Maybe she did need a vacation_. "Fine, tomorrow I'll take a ride to wherever I feel like and spend the weekend there."

And with that she went to pull together supplies for the trip, having no idea what she was really about to get herself into.


	2. belle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm posting this earlier than i was planning, just because i couldn't wait for friday. so i hope you guys enjoy! as always, comments and likes are appreciated!

ii. belle

  
Emma felt a little off that morning as she packed her supplies for the three day trip. She had decided that she was going to hop on her horse and ride through the day, or until she felt like it was the right place to stop and find a room wherever she could. Granny was pleased with the plan Emma had only concocted when she couldn't fall asleep the night before, but Ruby was a bit hesitant despite being the first to insist on the vacation.

The fiery brunette was both types of stereotypical sisters in one lovable package, the one who dragged Emma into trouble just for the fun of it and the one who worried herself sick over Emma's wellbeing. It was endearing but somewhat hindering as the blonde was already looking for a good reason not to take this trip and Ruby was only making her more anxious.

"She'll be fine Ruby, leave the poor girl alone!" Granny urged as she nudged her granddaughter to the side, bringing herself to stand right in front of Emma. "Now you need this little break, but if you don't return in three days time i'll disown your ass faster than you can say Killian Jones."

If Emma had the audacity to roll her eyes at granny she would've, she knew for certain that the old woman was all bark and no bite in that aspect. She'd made the same threat several times throughout Emma's life, and it used to make Emma physically sick with fear, but she'd never actually acted upon it in anyway and she never would. Love ran too deep for that.

"Yes ma'am." Emma offered up anyways to appease the old woman and turned to Ruby for the inappropriate send off she knew she was about to receive now that the motherly phase had passed.

Ruby leaned in for a hug and when Emma leaned in the other girl started her whispered lecture. "I want you to get laid while you're out there kid, it'll take some of the weight off your shoulders and between the riding and well... riding maybe you'll come home a little sore but happier yeah?"

Emma shook her head as she laughed but gave Ruby a quick squeeze before letting go and responding, "I'll do my best Rubes."

With that Emma pulled herself up into the saddle and she was off, trotting towards the path that would lead her into the woods she had been exploring for the past sixteen years. The woods she thought she knew like the back of her hand but this day would change her perspective greatly.

As Emma led her steed around trees and through small streams she began to day dream. She didn't think that she was particularly unhappy over the past weeks but now that she thought about it she became aware of a couple things.

Emma was a secret hopeless romantic and she hadn't been anywhere near serious with a girl in years. It was kind of sad really, she was an attractive and smart girl, she really could've had almost anybody she wanted in that town. But no one was really what she was looking for in life, sure there were plenty of nice girls in town that she could settle for but Emma didn't want to just _settle_ for something like that.

As she thought, she guided her horse to the left on a fork in the road, not particularly noticing that this wasn't the fork she usually turned at, that one was probably a mile ahead and looked much friendlier than the path she was headed down now. The temperature seemed to drop to freezing point and the light was getting dimmer as they continued on their journey. Emma was still lost in thought.

If she were to settle down with anybody it would have to be someone that she felt like she could have adventures with, where she wouldn't wake up next to them and feel like every day was the same. She wanted somebody that would make her feel wanted and at home no matter where they were. Emma needed somebody who would comfort her when she felt insecure and tell her that she was enough.

A sudden sound of a twig snapping somewhere to her left brought Emma back to reality, only to discover that she had no idea where she was. She'd finally found a part of the woods she and Ruby had never set foot in. She was prepared to turn around and just head back the way she came when she realized there were a couple pairs of glowing eyes staring at her through the brush that lay behind her. "Okay baby, now is the time to really come through for me."

With that she gave the mare a swift quick to the side and they were sprinting through the woods, the barks of wolves sounding hot on their tail. If Emma gave it a little thought she could practically feel their hot breath on her back, feel their jaws clamp down on her leg, as she dodged branches coming at her face. There was nowhere to go, she had to outrun them but she could already tell that they were gaining ground far too fast for Emma to outlast them.

As she came to another fork in the road Emma decided to go right at the very last second in hopes of throwing the canines off but if anything they just seemed to multiply in number. _Oh for fuck's sake, this is why I shouldn't go on vacations or take god damn breaks._

Just as Emma thought she was definitely doomed she realized that she was coming up on a massive wrought iron gate, a gate that appeared to be opening by itself as far as she could tell. She had doubts about a self opening gate but the will to live was stronger so she made her decision, steering the horse towards the gate as a wolf snapped at her ankle.

Emma tucked her head into the dark mane of her horse as they took the final strides that pushed them through the gates and she heard a creak behind her. She tore her gaze away from the snow covered ground under the hooves to look back and see that the wolves were forced to skid to a stop or slam into the gates which had shut behind them. That was odd though as there was no one around to shut them behind them or even open them in the first place for that matter.

"Haha! Take that!" Emma shouted at the snarling beasts as she fist pumped the air; it probably wasn't the most sane thing to do right now but she had just almost died so she wasn't particularly worried about her sanity. What she was worried about now was finding out where the hell she was and how she was going to make her way home without being dinner for those wolves. "This only proves my point that I should **not** have gone on vacation."

She nudged the horse to turn around and for the first time she noticed her surroundings. "Where the hell am I!" Emma shouted as she tilted her head back to take in the full scene in front of her. She was at a castle. A fucking castle. In the middle of the woods. Woods that she had spent all of her free time in as a kid, mind you, so to say that this discovery was a shock to the system would be a gross understatement.

"Here we go." Emma muttered, more to herself than the horse as she urged him onwards to the castle doors. The whole place was just magnificent in every aspect, Emma thought, as she meandered through the garden which must be quite beautiful when it was in full bloom. The castle was a work of art, from the fountains along its walkway to the towers looming tall through the snowy haze. The place seems fitting only of a fairytale royal, some kind of king who loves all of his people and a queen whose laugh fills bustling halls, not the vacant and ominous look it was giving off now.

She led her steed to the stables just off to the side, making sure that there was hay and water before shutting the door and walking back up to the main entrance. The grand doors were just as overwhelming as the rest of the palace, black and rather large, but Emma takes a deep breath and pushes them open anyways.

As she steps inside she is underwhelmed to find that, while the castle is just as magnificent on the inside as it is on the outside, it appears to be vacant. Which means no one to help her make her way past those wolves and possibly no food or any other resources she might need for her trip. Emma took a few more steps into the foyer when she heard a floor board creak to her right.

Whipping around, Emma again found no one but decided that if she was going to spend any time in the castle it was worth investigating. But as she made her way over to the spot the only thing she could find there was a clock and a candelabra which almost seemed to be hiding under the table. Emma leaned down and went to reach for the candelabra, perhaps it would be useful if she could just find something to light it with; but as she began to lift it up she was startled to find it began moving and protested, "Hey! Hands off the goodies, you haven't even taken me out yet."

Emma was so startled that she dropped the metal creature and simultaneously smacked her head on the table in her haste to move away. She stood more cautiously as she cradled the back of her head, only to realize that she was now hearing yet another voice. "Now look what you've done you loud mouthed imbecile, you know she is not going to be happy with this, or us for that matter because I always seem to be involved in all of your shenanigans."

"Oh come on," the first voice, the candelabra Emma realized, whined as she crossed her arms, "this is the first visitor we've had in almost twenty eight years, a possible end to the curse, and you want me to send her away?"

The clock looked annoyed, if that was at all possible before conceding, "Fine but she's your responsibility and when the Queen undoubtedly gets pissed it's going to be your punishment, and your punishment alone. There's no way i'm cleaning that whole ballroom by myself again."

"As you wish, Mal." The candelabra turned away from her cranky compatriot and focused her attention on Emma, who had watched the whole exchange with a slack jaw. "Oy, mouth closed or you'll catch flies. Didn't your mother ever teach you anything?"

"Well my mother abandoned me at an orphanage hours after giving birth to me, so she didn't teach me much of anything." The candelabra looked taken aback by the brutal honesty but Emma was fairly certain she had fallen off the horse at some point and this whole experience was just a hallucination.

"Honest. I like that." A 'hand' was extended and Emma took it as introductions were made, "The name's Zelena and that lovely stick in the mud right there is Maleficent. Welcome to your locally owned cursed castle."

Maleficent rolled her eyes at the antics but Emma's eyes bulged before she gained control of herself again. "Okay, so definitely a hallucination. Magic isn't real and neither are curses, or talking inanimate objects."

"Oh how I wish all of that were true but unfortunately I can assure you this is very much our reality. Now come, you must be cold and hungry, i'll have the staff whip up something warm for you to eat and then we'll discuss a bit more yeah? Alright good."

And with that Zelena turned from Emma and began walking towards what she assumed to be the kitchens, Maleficent trailing behind her and muttering about her impending migraine and something about rusty gears. Hesitantly, Emma followed after them and when she entered the kitchen she was a little less surprised to find more inanimate objects moving by themselves, some cleaning up their work areas, others preparing dinner for... the Queen if she had heard Maleficent right.

She went to go ask the candelabra herself when she noticed that she was currently in a small argument with a teapot and feather duster while Maleficent sighed and spun her hands round and round in exasperation. Emma cleared her throat as she approached them and Zelena threw the teapot one last menacing look before gesturing to the small wooden dining table on the other side of the room, "Right this way... uh, I never did ask you your name did I? Apologies."

"It's Emma, Emma Swan." She answered as she took a seat at the small table, watching as Zelena hoisted herself into the chair across from her and then up onto the table itself, then catching the teapot whispering with Maleficent before they parted ways and ordering the other objects around to make the dinner.

Zelena brought the attention back to her once again, "So Emma, Emma Swan, what brings you to our humble abode?"

"Well I was supposed to be taking a vacation somewhere, I don't know where really, when I took a wrong turn, got chased by wolves as a consequence and barely made it through your gates with my life. You know it's June in the rest of the world right, and it's clear skies and no snow less than a mile away. What's up with this place?"

"Ah now that's a good question, you see what happened to this castle was --" Zelena was cut off as the teapot loudly, and pointedly, announced, "Dinner is served!"

Emma turned her attention to the bowl of soup in front of her, she hadn't realized how hungry she was and as she began to dig in the the teapot began to speak to her. "Hi Emma. My name is Mary Margaret, but people call me Snow around here, it's wonderful to have you here _for the night_." She emphasized as she cast a pointed glance at Zelena, who was doing her best to look elsewhere at the moment. "If you need anything just let me, or Kathryn know," she nodded towards the feather duster quickly moving about the room.

Snow hopped down from the table and made her way back to Kathryn, leaving Emma to Zelena who was currently eyeing her like she was her new project. "So a curse, huh?"

She was about to receive an answer when the room was filled with purple smoke and a booming voice emerged from it. "And **what exactly** is happening down here?"

Emma turned to find the source of the new voice and she made eye contact with, undoubtedly, the most beautiful woman that she had ever laid eyes on. The intense glare coming from the raven haired beauty was a bit of a warning sign but Emma couldn't help but admire the woman anyways, the dark red dress the woman wore perfectly highlighted every detail of the woman's body. It wasn't just that though, Emma could tell already that this woman was intelligent and that she was not somebody you willingly angered.

Before Emma could say something she might regret, Zelena jumped in. "Well you see, _your majesty_ ," Zelena drawled and Emma knew she would never call her that had the blonde not been present, "Emma here happened across those nasty wolves that stroll around our gates and the poor girl was in need of a place to stay for the night so here she is. Ready to accept your hospitality, charity, and understanding."

Emma grimaced as Zelena spoke those words and Maleficent's exasperated head shaking only furthered her thinking that she was about to be thrown out. Emma made to stand, "Your majesty, if it's a problem for me to be here then I will leave but if I could just stay for --"

By some unknown force and a flick of Regina's wrist, Emma was shoved back into her chair and left to stare in wonder at the woman as she waited to hear her verdict. "And what made you think you had the right to address me? You enter my home, eat my food, conspire with my servants, and you think that you can tell me how this is all going to work out? You are sorely mistaken. Take your belongings and leave, now."

Regina raised her hand, ready to poof herself out of the room again Emma supposed, but she was interrupted by the feather duster. Kathryn cleared her throat, "Your majesty if I may insert an opinion into this matter?" The words seemed oddly carefully chosen to the blonde but the Queen nodded her approval. "If i'm not mistaken then I am hearing little foot steps making their way down the stairs as we speak and i'm quite certain that it wouldn't be good for the young lad to see someone new be dismissed right in front of him. Do you agree?"

The Queen seemed to tense a little at these words, the sneer gone from her face and replaced by a tight lipped smile, one that said Kathryn had just successfully manipulated Regina into letting the newcomer stay. "As I thought your majesty, now may we prepare dinner for you and the boy?"

It seemed like Regina was doing everything in her power not to roll her eyes at the duster and she managed to grit out, "Just Henry, I've lost my appetite." She looked ready to whisk herself away when suddenly the Queen was gasping and doubling over, one hand flying to her head as she steadied herself against a table with the other. The whole room seemed to tense, including Emma who was utterly confused by the present situation, the only person willing to move being Zelena who hopped off the table and hurried to the Queen's side.

After a few more seconds, which were deadly silent aside from Regina's labored breathing, the regal woman was waving her hand through the air, although it looked like the movement pained her, and with a puff of smoke the Queen and her candelabra were gone. This left the blonde to stare open mouthed at the spot she had just been in.

"The Queen has magic?" Emma whispered in disbelief, it wasn't possible. This was the real world not some kind of fairytale, people didn't just have magic or teleport themselves out of rooms because they were angry. It just wasn't how the world worked and as someone who thought she had seen most of what the world had to throw at her, Emma was rather put off by this new discovery.

She didn't have much time to dwell on it though as a young boy, probably ten years old with shaggy brown hair and a goofy smile, burst through the door. "Snow I'm hungry! Mom said that I can have --"

It was then that Henry took notice of the strange face in the room and his little jaw dropped. "Who are you?!" He shouted in excitement before looking over to Maleficent's and he took a deep breath, looking ready to go off on some sort of excited rant about this new person but the woman cut him off.

"Henry, this is Emma and she is gonna be staying with us for a little while until we can figure out how to get her home. She had a run in with those nasty wolves out front and now she needs to eat, why don't you sit down and eat with her? And remember to breath between sentences young man."

With that, Maleficent began to shuffle off but not before Emma could cast her an inquisitive glance which she pretended not to notice. Emma turned back to her dinner and found that Henry was now seated across from her and staring, almost expectantly so she cleared her throat and began, "So you're Henry huh?" Vigorous nodding. "And that woman who poofed out of here is your mother?"

"Yes. No. Yes and no." Henry's face screwed up as he decided how much he wanted to tell this new stranger but he had already decided to like Emma so what would this hurt. "My mom died when she was having me and after that mom took me in, they were best friends so my mom was basically going to be family anyways right? Well now she's just **my mom** and it's been that way for as long as i can remember."

"And what just happened with the whole scene your mom made in here? She seemed to be getting a bit worked up over someone needing a meal and a place to stay. And then there was the whole doubling over in pain thing."

At that Henry's face dropped, all traces of the happy boy she had just been talking to gone and replaced with someone who looked wiser than their ten years of age. The boy turned towards Maleficent and before he could even voice a question, the clock was nodding, giving him the answer he hoped he wouldn't receive.

"I'm sorry Emma, I have to go but i'll talk to you tomorrow? I can show you around the castle if you want?" Henry supplied as he slid out of his chair, pushing away the dinner he had barely touched before picking up Maleficent and scurrying out of the room.

Emma, was again just left to stare, completely confused by the night's happenings. She turned to Snow and Kathryn, looking for answers only to find the pair in a heated whispering match. But enough was enough, she wanted some sort of answer and she announced as much, "Look I get that everybody has skeletons in their closets, I respect that, but it sounds like i'm gonna be stuck with you guys for a little while so can I please get some answers?"

Snow sighed and nodded to Kathryn before turning back to ordering the other kitchen supplies around. Kathryn shuffled over to the table and looked expectantly at Emma, who picked her up and placed her on the small wooden table top. "How old are you Emma?"

"I'll be twenty eight at the end of the month, why?"

Kathryn hesitated for a moment before going on, "Almost twenty eight years ago the queen was hosting a party when an old hag walked in and wanted shelter. Except it turns out that the hag was an enchantress and when Regina turned her away she put a curse on us. We all have been stuck in this castle ever since and as far as we know, nobody knows that we exist or remembers where we are. We're stuck here, like this until someone breaks the curse."

"And how is the curse supposed to be broken?" Emma was beginning to regret her decision, she should've tried to outrun the wolves instead.

"Well you see, we have... an expiration date for lack of a better term. When the last petal on the enchanted rose that the witch left us, which is essentially our hourglass, falls we will all become full fledged household objects. No more living for the lot us and we're really not quite sure what will happen to Regina or Henry."

Emma was aware that Kathryn had just avoided her question but instead of prying she thought back on the Queen and her downright peachy disposition, "What happened to the Queen when she walked in here? It looked as though somebody had struck her when she doubled over."

Suddenly there was a loud crash from somewhere in the castle followed by aggravated shouting. Emma couldn't make out any words but she was pretty sure Zelena was the one doing the shouting. Kathryn cast a glance over at Snow who was worrying her lip, if that was possible, before explaining the rest of the story to Emma. "That was Regina's burden from the curse, she can't leave just like the rest of us but as you can see she kept her human features. It came at a high price though and for the past several years it's only been getting worse. She's plagued by these awful violent visions which become impulse for her. She became very good at controlling those urges, she really worked on when and where she would let loose. But with the last petal being so close to falling it's become much harder for her and I think the suddenness of your arrival triggered something within."

Emma blanched, she hated to think that she was the cause of someone's suffering but then a thought occurred to her. "Should Henry be in there?"

"He's the only thing that keeps her from tearing this castle down brick by brick. She would _never_ hurt him, even at her darkest." A dark look passed over Snow's face but neither of the other women took notice.

"Wow. Okay, so that's a lot of information to deal with. Um is there anything else I should know if I'm going to be trapped here apparently." Emma was pushing herself up from the table when Kathryn and Snow shouted, "DO NOT GO TO THE WEST WING!"

The blonde jumped at the sudden startling announcement and Snow apologized but clarified, "It's Regina's private wing, she goes there to let out those impulses ... among other things. Just don't go there."

Emma nodded and after thanking Snow for the meal, followed Kathryn to the bedroom that she would be staying in, which was one of the farthest rooms in the east wing that they could find. Still, she could hear objects being thrown and loud arguing coming from the west and Emma couldn't help but shutter. _What the hell had she gotten herself into?_

"Right so we'll see you tomorrow morning for breakfast and Henry can show you the castle like he wanted." Kathryn said her parting words before slipping out the door, leaving Emma to wander about the room. She looked over the few trinkets inside and the bookshelf before deciding she might as well go to bed, she would have plenty of time to explore the castle, seeing as she was trapped for the foreseeable future.

She clambered into the bed, one which probably hadn't been used in three decades but was still softer than any she had ever laid on. Her last thought before she fell asleep was that Granny would likely disown her for this. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whatcha think?


	3. how does a moment last forever

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading guys, sorry this update took so long! my phone was basically wrecked and everything i had written was lost so I had to wait to get it restored. But here it is at last!

Emma was running, running for her life; but from what she couldn't tell you. Her breath was coming out in short, staccato pants, her lungs were on fire as she raced through the evergreens. Branches whipped her face as she pushed through and her feet barely avoided tripping up on tree roots. Something was rustling in the brush behind her and it was most definitely getting closer.

She ran for the tree line that was fast approaching, but at the last second Emma changed course and veered off to the right, hoping to shake off whatever the hell was giving chase. It worked.

Emma watched as a black cloaked figure went streaking past her, out into whatever lays beyond these trees, leaving Emma in momentary peace as she tried to catch her breath.

After a couple minutes of silence Emma straightened herself up, getting ready to figure out where to go next. But when she stepped out from behind the tree she almost ran into the smirking face of the Queen herself.

"Boo."

 

 

 

Emma sat up with a start, waking up from her odd dream breathless and aching, as though she had actually been chased. She let out a guttural groan as she flopped back into the soft pillows, about to succumb to sleep once more when the door was suddenly thrown open.

An eager, and somewhat squeaky, voice called through her sleepy haze, "Emma wake up! Snow is making us breakfast and then we get to go explore the castle! Come on!"

With that, Henry left the room, leaving Emma to stare at the ceiling and listen as his small footsteps retreated down the corridor. She took her sweet time getting up, stretching out and taking advantage of the few minutes she had left in the cloud-like bed.

When Emma finally managed to actually stand up she realized that she had left her bags with her horse out in the stables, leaving her nothing to wear. She scanned the room for a wardrobe but found that someone had already thought of her; an outfit suitable for her was left out on a chair.

Her movements were languid as she pulled on the clothes, a pair of riding pants and a simple woolen shirt along with her normal work boots. She felt more sure of herself than she had since she set foot in this castle as she finished dressing herself, the simple clothing made her feel much more ... Emma.

Except she caught herself in the vanity mirror as she walked towards the door and her reality came sinking back in. She was stuck in a castle for who-knows-how-long with a staff of animated household objects, an increasingly violent Queen who also had magic, and a ten year old boy.

She may as well be in one of her stories.

Oh well, that's that, Emma thought. If this was going to be her reality she was just going to have to put her chin up and deal with it. As she walked out of the ornate bedroom she focused on trying to remember the path that she had followed Kathryn down last night as she made her way to the kitchen.

After two wrongs turns and several back tracks she finally made her way to the servant's door that led to the kitchen, the damn castle was definitely bigger on the inside than it looked on the out. Emma had to wonder if it was magic but as she was trying to stay connected to the real world she decided it was just some fancy architectural illusions. Nothing more.

Emma took a deep breath and stepped into the kitchen, bracing herself to watch as objects hustled around but instead she only saw Snow, the enchanted teapot, and Henry. The little boy looked so innocent as she watched him, he sat at the table eating his eggs as he swung his legs underneath him. He was tiny for a boy his age, she thought, his feet barely skidded across the floor as he dangled them off the chair.

So little and innocent, yet Emma imagined he had already seen far too much suffering and pain in the small world he called his own.

Emma cleared her throat and rapped her knuckles on the door frame, announcing her presence and two pairs of eyes snapped up to look at her. "You're here!" Henry called as he bounced in his seat.

"Of course I'm here kid, you think I would miss out on breakfast?" Henry shot her his attempt at an unimpressed glare, making her laugh as she added, "And obviously, I couldn't wait for my super special tour!"

Henry grinned and laughed at the blonde's antics before returning his attention to finishing his breakfast. Out of the corner of her eye Emma caught Snow smiling at the pair as she had breakfast rolled over for the newcomer.

Emma finished her eggs and sausage as quickly as she could without being disgusting since Henry was already bouncing off the walls with energy and they hadn't even done anything yet. As soon as the last bite was in her mouth Henry was tugging at her hand and trying to drag her out of the room but Emma planted her feet and pulled him to a stop.

"Why are we stopping? We haven't even started."

"I think you're forgetting something little man." Emma cast her eyes towards their breakfast and then nodded her head towards Snow.

Henry's mouth formed an 'O' and he smacked his forehead with his palm in a manner that clearly expressed how could I forget. "Thanks for breakfast Snow! It was really, really good."

He peered up at Emma for approval and she nodded with a soft smile, "Thank you Snow, now let's go explore kid."

And with that Henry was tugging again and Emma practically had to jog to keep up with the pace he was setting for them. "This is so cool! We've never had a new person before, I don't even know where to start!"

Emma purses her lips in thought before suggesting, "If we start at the stables you can meet my horse."

Henry looked at her like she just told him that Christmas was coming early that year.

 

 

 

The two had spent the day exploring the grounds together and Emma would readily admit she was having a blast with the kid. It started when she had offered to take Henry for a ride and he looked like he had been offered the keys to the kingdom.

"What? You're growing up in a castle and you're telling me you haven't been riding before?" Emma highly doubted Her majesty would let that slide, it seemed like a princely thing to learn.

Henry shuffled his feet and cast his gaze to the ground in response, "Our last horse died twenty seven years ago during one of mom's last escape attempts. It ... that was really hard for her. I haven't been riding since before the curse was cast."

Emma was taken back by the statement but when she recovered she didn't hesitate before throwing Henry up into the saddle. He let out a yelp midair but when he was settled and Emma had pulled herself up behind him, Henry turned and gave her the biggest grin she had ever seen on a kid's face.

A warm sensation bubbled up in her chest, something about the kid's laughter had been having that effect on her all morning and she couldn't shake it. It was nice but somewhat disconcerting as she had known the kid for a grand total of twelve hours, most of which she had slept through.

They explored the rest of the snowy grounds from horseback and Emma was more than aware that Henry was purposefully leaving things out of their tour so he could later have an 'epiphany', they would take another lap around the castle, and he got to be on the horse a little longer. She didn't mind at all, Emma liked being outside and it was cute to watch Henry get excited over memories he had all over the castle.

When they finally went indoors again Henry wasted no time in carrying on with the show. Before she could finish hanging up the red riding hood she had borrowed from Ruby for her trip, she had found the kid was racing off to the east wing. Again, leaving her to jog to catch up.

They spent a lot of time in the ballroom, the dining hall, and especially the library. Emma had been blown away as they walked into the grand room, admiring the astoundingly high shelves of books which were highlighted by the sunlight streaming through the skylights high above them. The library showed signs of frequent use, a large contrast to the beautiful but dreary ballroom and stuffy dining hall.

Henry directed Emma to his personal shelves, explaining to her how he and his mother spent several days scouring the library for only the best books for his reading catalogue. Emma was surprised to see that it held some advanced reading, in her opinion, but Henry's quick response had been that technically he was older than her so why shouldn't it be?

The realization shut her up real quick. "Touché kid."

The two spent the rest of the day in the library, exchanging stories and listing off their favorite books. After a little while Emma's curiosity got the best of her and she decided to question Henry, hoping to get some more information out of him. Loose lips might sink the ship of the castle's staff but Henry was a very blunt child and she was fairly certain he wouldn't get in trouble for spilling anyways.

Henry had challenged the blonde to a contest to see who could lay upside down on the couch the longest when Emma turned her head to him, "How's your mom doing kid?"

The boy was red in the face from the blood rushing to his head, they had been going at it for almost five minutes already and he looked ready to pass out. At this question he relented, righting himself and waiting for Emma to follow suit as he pondered how to answer the newcomer. "She's okay. I mean, for normal people she's not okay, by like ten miles, but we're not exactly normal here."

Emma snorted. "The talking candelabra tipped me off to that."

That earned her a wobbly smile but when Henry looked up again he had a wistful look that spoke to his actual age rather than his ten year old appearance. "She's getting worse actually and it's really starting to scare me. She always lies and says she's fine but I see it, see the way she grips the table when we eat together or hear the way her breathing gets when we read together and she has to stop and shut her eyes really tight. And I know that she would never intentionally hurt me, she's my mom and she loves me... but last night, that was closer than she's ever gotten in decades. She hasn't been like this since the curse first came and she didn't know how to control it."

He sighed and Emma, who had only really met the boy today, wished that she could take away all his problems. She'd seen today how vibrant and intelligent and curious Henry was and in no way was it fair that he had to be locked up here. Like a bird in a cage.

Unfortunately, she knew the feeling and it made her all the more compassionate for the kid.

That made her angry at Regina for turning the enchantress away, but it was hard to stay mad at a woman who was just as trapped as he was, if not more.

Emma silently took a few deep breaths, forcing herself to calm down before she tried to speak again.

"Let's go get dinner Henry." She slowly stood and offered him a hand which he took without hesitation, the small appendage slipping into her own with a light squeeze. Emma smiled as she continued to look forward, squeezing back as they walked back down the hallway towards the kitchen. Henry continued to loosely grip the strong hand and she could feel the slight tremors coming from his body every couple seconds.

They were about to walk into the kitchen, where Emma could hear Kathryn talking and the scent of cooking chicken was wafting out from behind its door, when the blonde heard something she hadn't been expecting.

Somewhere from within the west wing came a deafening scream, raw with emotion and so full of agony that Emma practically felt the pain the Queen was no doubt experiencing. Emma was barely conscious of the way Henry turned into her body, burying his face into her stomach as she tried to listen for further noise.

They stood like that in the hall for another minute when Emma realized there wasn't another sound in the castle, the chatter from the kitchen had died out and there was stunning silence from the west wing.

With a tentative hand, Emma began rubbing circles in Henry's back, not quite sure of how to comfort the boy but knowing something had to be done. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw Maleficent duck out of the kitchen to find the pair right in the door way, the clock held a look of great sorrow and she motioned for them to join her as she pushed back into the kitchen.

"Come on, Henry." Emma whispered to the young boy after letting him cling to her for another minute. When he pulled back she saw that his eyes were red rimmed and there were tear tracks running down his face even though he tried to put on a brave face.

She tugged the little boy's hand into her own once again before pulling them into the kitchen. There she found that everyone was working, as they had been the night before except the trio who had greeted her last night. They were missing their mouthy ring leader but Emma assumed that Zelena was with the Queen once again.

The three looked up from their hushed conversation upon their entrance and Maleficent immediately moved to the boy, "Henry sit down honey, Snow will make you something to eat okay?"

Henry nodded numbly as he plopped himself into a chair, staring at the ground as he tried to stop the fresh batch of tears from slipping down his cheeks.

Emma remained quiet, unsure of what to do or what to even ask in this situation when Kathryn made eye contact with her and nodded towards the door at once. The blonde waited for the duster to take the lead, slipping out of the kitchen once again only to find that the hall was empty.

"Uh, Kathryn?" Emma whispered into the hall, the castle was still eerily quiet and she wasn't about to break the silence.

The feather duster popped out from around a corner about twenty feet away, "Come on, there's something I need to show you."

With that, she disappeared once again, leaving Emma to hurry to catch up. Rounding the corner, Emma found herself alone once again until she realized there was a door ajar at the end of the hall. She jogged over to it and when she slipped through Emma wasn't surprised to find that Kathryn was nowhere to be found again.

"If you want me to follow you, there are better ways to go about it." She sighed in irritation when she heard a throat being cleared behind her.

Emma spun on her heel and found Kathryn atop a table to her left. "Okay, I followed you here but now what? This looks like just another bedroom."

"Castles have a lot to hide dear, now do me a favor and push on the glass of that mirror." Kathryn cut her eyes from Emma to the desired object and the blonde followed her gaze.

When she looked she found nothing but an ornate, full sized mirror. Emma cast a questioning look over her shoulder before doing as she was asked and pushing on the mirror.

She was taken aback when the glass of the mirror actually moved, swinging open as though it were a door but where it led Emma had no idea. Peering in, the blonde could see only just make out the beginnings of a rather large tunnel before it reached total darkness. She turned back to address Kathryn only to find the duster was making her way over already, "Okay this is cool and all, I've been wondering where the secret entrances of this castle have been all day, but why are you showing me this? Why now?"

  
"If you would be so kind as to give me a lift, I will show you why and why it's important for you to see now." When Emma scooped up the duster she further elaborated, "I'm taking you to see something, if you're going to be stuck with us for the foreseeable future you should see the Queen before you end up falling victim to her rage."

Emma shot a dubious look at the woman before venturing into the tunnel system. "You know where we're going?" As she continued down their set path it grew darker and darker until there was nothing but darkness surrounding them, and while Emma knew the tunnel was wide enough to fit an elephant the unknown made her feel rather claustrophobic.

Kathryn released a throaty chuckle that made the blonde's hair raise. "Of course I know where we're going, I could do this in my sleep and I couldn't risk the possibility of us being noticed so we couldn't bring a torch. Turn left right here."

Doing as instructed, Emma braced herself to walk right into a wall but only found more tunnel. As an extra precaution she stuck out her unoccupied hand, feeling for the tunnel walls as well as any other potentially hazardous objects.

They continued on this way for a few minutes, Kathryn instructing and Emma blindly blundering along and hoping she didn't fall, trip, or smash into anything. The rest of their walk was silent for the most part, Emma attempted to question the duster further but she was tightlipped. Every question was met with the response, "Look now, explain later."

So Emma looked, to the best of her ability. She looked at the darkness around her with wide, wondering eyes until she could make out a faint light at the end of the tunnel. "Is that where --"

"How many times do I have to tell you that I'll explain everything later! Just keep walking." Kathryn bit out and in that moment Emma faltered in her steps, not quite sure she wanted to see what was at the end of this corridor.

But curiosity won out and she found her feet carrying her onward anyways, each step bringing her closer to the warm light. She was maybe twenty feet away from the first rays when she began to make out distinct noises, one of which being the voice of a certain enchanted candelabra. As they came closer to what Emma now realized was a servant's entrance to the room she gasped at the sight in front of her. Without tearing her gaze away she whispered, "Does she know we're here?"

"No. It's enchanted, we can see and hear them but they can't do the same to us. As far as they know we're not here. Now watch." There was a heavy sense of melancholy in the duster's voice that told Emma just how much Kathryn cared for her Queen.

Her eyes cut back to the scene unfolding in front of her when there was a low, pained groan that echoed in the otherwise silent room. It didn't take a genius to realize that it had come from the forgotten Queen, who sat in one of the only remaining chairs in the room, doubled over and clutching her head. Zelena sat on the edge of the table in front of her and it was quite clear that the candelabra had no idea what to do or how to be of any help. So they sat in silence, aside from Regina's occasional agonized moan, unknowingly being observed by the intense gaze of the castle's newcomer.

Emma was confused, she understood that the Queen was in a great deal of pain because she was plagued by these awful visions as Henry had told her a bit about it. What left her befuddled was why Kathryn felt the need to have her watch the woman's suffering. "Is this what you wanted me to see? The Queen barely able to lift her head?"

"Please, just watch for a few more minutes and you'll see why I brought you here." And as soon as the last word left her mouth there was a new development in the room.

Regina was flying out of her chair, scrambling to backpedal away from the candelabra and moving closer to the spot where the blonde was hiding with every frantic step. In fact, the Queen's course was taking her to the exact point where Emma was standing and as she watched the woman struggle to with every movement the blonde prepared to catch her. Just as she was set to cross through the barrier there was a thud and Regina stopped, back pressed against the magical force as a means of support as she attempted to control her urges. She was breathing heavily and as Emma watched from directly behind the Queen, she could see that there were tears in her otherwise elegant looking clothing to go with scratch marks and bruises littered across her body.

And that was just what Emma could see on the exposed skin.

"Why didn't she just fall through?" Emma asked as she kept her eyes on the Queen, watching Zelena making her way over in her periphery.

Kathryn sighed, "It's enchanted so that the Queen can't get through it, to her it looks and feels like the rest of the wall."

Absently, Emma nodded her head before refocusing on what she was supposed to be watching anyways. Zelena was cautiously edging closer to her Queen, who was still pressed against the wall as her hands curled into fists and her head shook back and forth. "Regina, tell me what you're seeing and I can try to help you. You don't have to be alone."

There was a harsh bark of laughter followed by a grunt of pain, but the Queen managed to grit out, "This is something you most definitely do not want to hear." Regina let a wave of magic roll off of her, it was enough to knock the candelabra high into the air before she came plummeting back down for a hard landing. For some reason or another, Emma already knew that that blast was Regina doing her best to hold back.

In a startling movement Regina twisted, turning to face the wall and slamming her hands into the enchanted entrance, causing Emma and her counterpart to jump. It was while the Queen was attempting to catch her breath that the blonde noticed something off with the woman's eyes. When they weren't clamped shut they were flittering about but Emma could see that they were pulsing a deep shade of purple, the same color that magical wave had been.

Magic. Damn. Emma thought as she observed the Queen's attempt to compose herself as the candelabra continued to try talking her down. When Zelena finally edged close enough to reach out and touch her leg the Queen collapsed, gasping as she hit the ground and scrambled to sit up again. Zelena wasted no time in hoisting herself up into her lap, placing a hand (if you could call it that) on each side of Regina's face and holding it so they could look each other in the eye.

Zelena spoke softly as she addressed the woman in front of her, "You have to fight this, there is no giving up when we still have precious time left. Time where we can be finding a way to break the curse and end this bloody nightmare. So you have to fight and you have to win, you have to look these nightmares in the face and tell them that you're not going down without a fight. Do you understand me?"

Emma watched Regina nod, and even that seemed to be a struggle enough, before gritting out, "I can fight this." Zelena smiled faintly at the response and was ready to speak once more when Regina convulsed violently, sending the candelabra tumbling out of her lap as she twitched on the ground. Zelena was scrambling back over to her Queen when the woman let out a pain riddled scream to rival the one that had echoed throughout the castle not twenty minutes ago.

"I can't watch this anymore." The blonde muttered before turning back and jogging through the tunnels, following the instructions Kathryn rasped out. This time it only took them about two minutes to traverse the dark halls before Emma was pushing on the mirror glass once again before bursting into the unused bedroom.

Kathryn hopped out of the blonde's arms immediately before turning to watch how Emma was reacting, which wasn't all that well. But that gave Kathryn all the more hope. If someone cared enough to be having the obvious meltdown that the blonde was having then that meant there was hope. Hope that someone could actually end this damn curse.

Meanwhile Emma could not catch her breath as she ran her hands through her hair, pulled at her clothes, and pacing. She had way too much nervous energy to just sit still and wait for Kathryn to explain so she started rapid firing the questions that flew into her mind. "Why would you make me watch that! I understood, Henry told me all about the stuff she goes through, I definitely did not need to see it firsthand. Why? Why did you need me to see that? And why can't anyone of you help her? I can't imagine someone doing something so awful as to warrant that kind of suffering. Tell me why, Kathryn."

With that, Emma deflated and sunk into the bed behind her, out of breath from her odd experience and her furious questions. She held her head in her hands, much the same way Regina had been when she felt the presence of an oncoming headache. Kathryn couldn't help but let a sad smile form on her face though, so few people had spared concern for Regina during her life and especially without knowing a single thing about her like this woman did. It was rather sweet, in a cruel twist of fate that someone would come along after so many years and so close to the end, that might stand a chance of breaking through to the Queen's hardened heart.

"I can't answer all of that, Emma," Kathryn started as she sidled toward the blonde, "but what I can tell you is why I took you there. If you're going to be in this castle you have to be aware of how bad this can get, now that was pretty bad but it was nowhere near as horrendous as one of her onslaughts can be. There isn't much that she can do anymore except ride them out, it's just too much for her to fight them off at this stage so we just have to wait it out with her."

Kathryn took a deep breath as she shuffled closer to Emma, this was the moment of truth. All of last night she had discussed with Snow, Maleficent, and Zelena when she could afford to be away from Regina and they had all come to the agreement. They needed Emma Swan's help, and one way or another they were going to get it. The plan had been to start with Kathryn's approach and from there they would see how their new arrival would take it. "I'm showing you this because I think you can help, Emma. I'm not quite sure how yet," which was a total lie, "but I believe that you were meant to be here and that in some way you are going to help save Regina. Do you believe in fate?"

Emma let out a bitter bark of a laugh, "I stopped believing in fate the moment the orphanage nuns informed me that I had been left out to die the day that I was born."

This was not the answer the feather duster had been expecting and Emma could see it written all over her features so she amended, "But I do believe in karma and I've had enough good things come my way that it's time I start paying it forward. And who knows, if magic really exists then maybe there is such a thing as fate or destiny or whatever."

"So you'll help us?!" Kathryn couldn't believe that it had actually worked, she though for sure that they were going to have to resort to Zelena threatening her in some way before they reached any kind of agreement.

Emma sighed, she knew she was signing herself up for trouble but when she really thought about it there was no way she could hang these people out to dry. If she were in Regina's position, especially with a son to worry about, she would hope that someone would come along to help her as well. So, without permission, she scooped up the feather duster and started back towards the kitchen, "Yeah, I'll help you guys out. But no lies or unexpected surprises like that again, If I'm gonna help I want to know exactly what I'm getting myself into and straight answers when I ask questions."

"Deal." Kathryn grinned as they entered the kitchen once again, nodding to Maleficent and Snow when they looked at her expectantly.

For the first time in twenty seven years, they actually stood a chance at happiness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you guys enjoyed it! comments? concerns? queries? quibbles? conundrums?


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